《Otherworldly Dungeon》 Chapter 1: Jumping Straight In I awoke in a vast expanse of pure white, the space stretching endlessly before me. Sitting calmly in front of me was a man in a pristine suit with dark black hair, appearing to be somewhere in his 30s. I observed in silence as he meticulously sifted through a towering stack of papers, his focused demeanor unwavering. After a long moment of contemplative silence, I gathered my courage and addressed the man. "Um, excuse me. Who are you? And where am I?" The man paused, setting down the stack of papers with an air of surprise evident on his features as he looked up at me from across the polished desk. "Oh? I didn''t anticipate your arrival so soon. My apologies for any inconvenience." "Well, that''s okay, I guess. But I still don''t understand why I''m here," I replied, strangely calm while my confusion was evident in my tone. "Ah, of course. You wouldn''t know," the man responded thoughtfully. "Allow me to explain. I am here to inform you that you''ve been chosen to be reincarnated as a dungeon core in one of the many fantasy worlds under our jurisdiction." I stared at him in disbelief, the implications of his words sinking in. A dungeon core? Like the ones from the games and novels I''ve read? And reincarnated? How did I die? As I tried to process the unexpected revelation, the man in the suit returned his attention to the paperwork before him. "While I would love to linger and allow you to fully grasp your situation, time is of the essence. I will provide you with a brief explanation before sending you on your way." I focused my attention, ready to absorb whatever information he had to offer. "You will be reborn into a fantasy realm as a dungeon core. Your primary responsibility will be to construct a dungeon to challenge the inhabitants of this world, preparing them for any potential cataclysms. As a dungeon core, your core will be indestructible, and your soul will be safeguarded by the system governing the world. Those who perish within your dungeon will be resurrected outside its confines, albeit with penalties to dissuade them from a hasty reentry. You will possess the creative liberty to craft your dungeon as you see fit and to confront invaders according to your discretion." I listened intently, committing every detail to memory as best I could. "Now, do you have any questions?" the man inquired. I paused, considering my questions carefully. After a moment of reflection, I started to speak, only to be abruptly interrupted by a brilliant pillar of light enveloping me, accompanied by a weighty pressure that soon followed. "That''s unfortunate. It appears our time is up. Enjoy your new life and endeavor to construct the finest dungeon possible," the man remarked as I was enveloped by the radiant beam, my conscious fading. - - - I awoke with a splitting headache, I try to look around with my groggy mind but only see gray walls surrounding me. After a moment, my headache subsides and I''m finally able to take in my situation. Looking around, I find myself in a small cave with rays of sunlight leaking in through the entrance, the faint sounds of birds entering from outside. Before I can keep looking around at my surroundings, bright text appears in front of my vision. [SYSTEM BOOTING¡­] [Initializing Core Systems¡­] [Loading World Engine¡­] [Checking Dungeon Parameters¡­] [Assigning Player Profile¡­] [Verifying Core Integrity¡­] [Connection to Fantasy Network: Established] [Reincarnation Process Complete] Welcome, Dungeon Core #0457 This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report. System Status: Stable All Systems Normal

[Player Profile] Name: [William] Species: [Dungeon Core] Core Type: [???] [Abilities] Dungeon Construction: Ability to create and modify dungeon environments and traps from base blueprints. Create Minions: Ability to summon and modify creatures and monsters you have created from blueprints to defend the dungeon. [Special Skills] Resurrection: Resurrect anything that dies in your dungeon with varying penalties applied to the Resurrected. System Protected: Your body, mind, and soul are protected by the system ¡°Wow, that¡¯s a lot.¡± After a bit of fumbling with the system window, I managed to dismiss the wall of text with a thought and finally began to look around. I started by examining my body¡ªor, I guess, the lack of one? Who cares? I look down to see a large red orb, about twice the size of a basketball, sitting snugly on a stone pedestal. It glows eerily, casting a red hue across the stone walls of the cave. Next, I turned my gaze toward the entrance of the cave. Outside, I saw a lush forest. The forest was a vibrant tapestry of greenery, with towering trees draped in thick foliage that filtered sunlight into dappled patterns on the forest floor. Soft moss carpeted the ground, and vibrant wildflowers peeked through the underbrush, adding splashes of color. The air was rich with the earthy scent of damp soil and the sweet fragrance of blooming plants. Birds flitted between branches, their cheerful songs echoing through the canopy, while small animals scurried among the ferns, creating a lively, tranquil atmosphere. Sunlight streamed through the leaves, casting a warm glow that invited exploration. ¡°Now that I¡¯ve looked around a bit, I should probably start making my dungeon before people start showing up. I¡¯ll start by creating my first floor.¡± With that statement ringing in my head, I sit there for a few minutes. After this brief moment of contemplation, I came to a shocking realization. ¡°How do I even build things? I didn¡¯t get a tutorial on being a dungeon core!¡± After voicing my complaints to the empty cave, I began poking and prodding the system with my mind, trying to extract any information about how to construct my dungeon. As I browsed the system menus, searching for explanations on dungeon building, I found a few and started reading. As time passed, the sunlight streaming through the cave entrance gradually transformed into a soft, silvery glow that bathed the cave in a calm, ethereal light. ¡°All of these tutorials are useless! What does ¡®force your will upon the world and bend the laws of the world using your magic¡¯ even mean?¡± I close the system windows and look around, noticing that it is now nighttime. ¡°Dang, all that reading for a bunch of gibberish. Well, I guess I should at least try it since I have nothing better to do! The cave is too small to work with, so I should start by making it bigger. But I don¡¯t want to just carve out the whole mountain. Maybe I can make it bigger on the inside, like one of those magic bags from those video games.¡± I focused my attention on the small cave, attempting to change it. Subconsciously, I began pulling from the massive well of magic resting in my core. The rough walls of the cave started to smooth out, and the once small, cramped space expanded until it was large enough to comfortably fit 30 people. I stopped focusing on the expansion and looked at my handiwork. ¡°Wow, that was easier than I thought. I must be a natural! Okay, let¡¯s try to make it even bigger with some space magic now!¡± Focusing on my core once more, I pulled from my pool of magic, willing it to transform into space magic and coat the room. Then, I command the space to expand the inside of the room to a massive scale. In moments, I watch as space rapidly distorted and stretched, transforming the room into a vast, empty space that spanned miles. ¡°Nice! I think I should make the first floor of my dungeon into a forest level. I just need some dirt, trees, plants, monsters, and a few other things.¡± I start by summoning a large, deep layer of dirt. ¡°Oh yea, I need some kinda sky. I want entering my dungeon to feel like walking through a portal into another world!¡± I start to play around with some illusion magic and after a few long hours, manages to recreate a super accurate day and night cycle, with a hot sun that beats down during the day, and a cool, dark sky with a full carpet of stars and one big, shining moon during the night. Next, I go to fill the first floor with trees and other various fauna¡¯s and flora¡¯s, only to be interrupted by a large system message. [Error] You do not possess the required blueprints to create the desired structures, items, or monsters at this time. Please acquire blueprints to proceed with creation. Looking at the system message, I froze for a moment. ¡°Right, nothing has actually entered my dungeon except for a few bugs that probably died in here before I arrived. Maybe I should create some and have them gather some things from outside? Opening the short list of blueprints, I decided to pick the only spider blueprint available to me. Something called a [Cave Widow], selecting it brought up a short description. [Cave Widow] The [Cave Widow] is a common spider species found within dark caverns and underground tunnels. It has a sleek, dark exoskeleton that blends seamlessly into the rocky surroundings, and its long, spindly legs allow it to move silently across the cave floors and walls. Cave Widows are known for weaving large, intricate webs in hidden corners, often spanning entire cave entrances. Though not highly venomous, their bite can cause temporary paralysis in small creatures. Their eerie, glowing eyes are often the only sign of their presence, watching patiently from the shadows for unsuspecting prey. ¡°Nice, I¡¯ll create a few and send them into the forest outside to collect some materials.¡± Focusing on the blueprint, I created 5 [Cave Widow]¡¯s near the entrance. It takes a minuscule amount of magic to do as they all appear in a small flash of light, upon looking at them, i discover a slight problem. ¡°They''re kinda small, how are they going to carry anything back?¡± Looking through my system menu, I use my [Create Minions] ability and select all five [Cave Widow]¡¯s. A large menu appears in front of my vision with a long list of various sliders and pre-made changes I can use to modify my creatures. After playing with the sliders for about an hour, I confirm the changes and look at my newly modified spiders. The modified, black [Cave Widow]¡¯s have been changed to be around the size of small dogs, and have also been given slightly more intelligence so that they can follow some simple order I give them. After checking to see if the changes look good, I give them a mental command. ¡°Go and gather items and small creatures from the forest, then bring them back to the dungeon!¡± I then watch as the 5 modified [Cave Widow]¡¯s skuttle out the dungeon and into the lush forest. Chapter 2: First floor construction A few hours go by as I sense my minions spread out across the forest, collecting various items and a few small critters. As I watch this happening with my new dungeon sight, I start to make a small, hidden room with no entrance somewhere on the first floor to hide my core inside. The room is small, plain, and gray, with smooth walls and only around the size of your average garage. The room doesn''t need to be flashy or anything because I''m just using it as a temporary core room until I need to make another on my next floor. Getting slightly bored after quickly making the plain core room, I start to make a large archway and door for the entrance of my dungeon. I enchant the large doors to open automatically when something sentient approaches. Then I open up the [Cave Widow]¡¯s status windows and have a look. [Status Window] --- Name: [Cave Widow] Type: Spider (Beast) Rank: Common Level: 3 HP: 120 / 120 MP: 40 / 40 [Abilities] - Web Trap: Creates a nearly invisible web to snare enemies, reducing movement speed by 50% for 10 seconds. - Venom Bite: Inflicts a venomous bite that inflicts paralyzes, and 10 poison damage over time for 5 seconds. - Wall Climb: Can scale walls and ceilings, making it difficult to target in enclosed areas. - Dark Vision: Can see perfectly in complete darkness, making it a deadly hunter in caves. --- [Resistances] - Poison Resistance (Low) - Dark Magic Resistance (Low) [Weaknesses] - Fire Magic (High) - Light-based Spells (Moderate) ¡°Wow, not bad for my first monster. At least, I think so. I don¡¯t really have anything to compare it to.¡± Returning to the work-in-progress entrance to my dungeon, I examine it from top to bottom, trying to figure out what it¡¯s missing. ¡°It¡¯s obviously not mysterious enough.¡± Thinking back to all the cool dungeon entrance designs from the video games I used to play, I come to a conclusion: I should add some writing or runes to the archway and door. However, I don¡¯t know any runes or ancient scripts. Well, I have some time, so I could probably make something up while I wait for my minions to collect resources from outside. By the time I finish creating my new writing system, I can feel the sun starting to rise. Seeing this, I mentally command my minions to return with their loot. As they start making their way back, I create a secret entrance to help them bring their haul into the dungeon without going through the main entrance. I design it as a large tunnel off to the side of the main entrance and conceal it with powerful illusion magic, making it inaccessible to outsiders, and appear as dense foliage to any observers. After about an hour, I watch as the five [Cave Widows] return through the secret entrance, each dragging a large sack made from their own silk. As the sacks full of loot enter my dungeon, they deflate as I absorb all their contents, my vision filling with system notifications. ¡°Nice! I can finally start making my forest!¡± I begin by randomly selecting plants from the list and spreading them across the first floor. Once the floor is seeded, I coat the floor with magic, accelerating the plants'' growth. In just two hours, the entire floor is teeming with life. I enhance the layout by adding rolling hills, rocky outcrops, small caves, and several ponds and rivers, culminating in a massive lake in the northern section. Next, I browse through my list of animal blueprints and start populating the floor with various forest creatures. I watch as newly created rabbits, birds, foxes, and countless insects and bugs spread across the floor, digging burrows and claiming territories. My [Cave Widows] even managed to secure a young wolf''s blueprint! I place a few wolf packs throughout the floor and observe the ecosystem taking shape. Looking at the variety of common forest animals, I start to think to myself. ¡°I should modify a few animals into monsters, so that when people delve into my dungeon, they face an actual challenge. Then I need to make some rewards for defeating them. But which animals should I modify first?¡± Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author. I wander around my floor, enhancing various creatures and transforming them into monsters by infusing them with magic and programming drop items into the system. After spending the entire day modifying creatures, I check a few of their system windows and see that they all rank as [Common] grade. From what I understand, the ranking system from lowest to highest goes [Common], [Uncommon], [Rare], [Epic], [Legendary], [Mythic], and [Ancient]. Higher rarity items are harder to find and, as a result, are more powerful and effective as crafting materials. ¡°And now I need a floor boss. I don¡¯t want it to be easy to find, either.¡± Looking through my blueprints, I start brainstorming how the boss encounter should work. After a moment, I got the perfect idea. Instead of a traditional boss room, I¡¯ll have the boss roam the floor and only engage adventurers who are carrying a specific item. It¡¯s genius! It needs to be fast, though, so it can evade anyone without the item. I scroll through my blueprints and stop on the rabbit. This should work. Now I just need to make some changes. Maybe I should try creating a new monster entirely. Thinking back to mythical creatures and fictional monsters from my old world, I think of the perfect choice. Summoning a rabbit, I gather my magic and focus on what I want my new creation to look like. A sudden surge of magic bursts forth from my core as the rabbit begins to glow with a bright, golden light, nearly blinding me, even with my dungeon sight. The light eventually fades, revealing my new creation. [Status Window] ¡ª Name: [Jackalope] Type: [Beast] (Mystical Creature) Rank: [Mythic] Level: 20 HP: 500 / 500 MP: 200 / 200 [Abilities] - Vocal Mimicry (Unique): The Jackalope can replicate any sound or voice it has heard, including human speech and animal cries. This ability can be used to deceive, lure enemies, or communicate across vast distances. When mimicking, the Jackalope can project the sound up to 100 meters away from its actual position, causing confusion or distraction. Cooldown: 30 seconds Duration: 10 seconds per use - Antler Charge: The Jackalope charges forward with its powerful antlers, dealing 3x damage and knocking back enemies 10 meters. Cooldown: 15 seconds - Mystic Dash: The Jackalope moves with blinding speed, phasing through obstacles and becoming temporarily invulnerable for 3 seconds. Cooldown: 25 seconds - Nature¡¯s Aura: Being a mythic creature of the wild, the Jackalope passively regenerates 5% of its HP and MP every 30 seconds when in natural environments (forests, plains, etc.). Passive - Illusory Escape: When its HP falls below 30%, the Jackalope creates three illusory copies of itself, each capable of mimicking its attacks. The illusions last for 10 seconds and deal 50% of the Jackalope¡¯s normal damage. Cooldown: Once per encounter
Resistances: - Nature-based Attacks (High) - Psychic Attacks (Moderate) - Light-based Spells (Moderate) Weaknesses: - Dark Magic (Moderate)
Loot: - Jackalope Antlers (Rare): Glowing with ancient energy, these antlers can be crafted into powerful weapons or used in rituals to summon powerful familiars. 40% drop chance - Jackalope Fur (Rare): The soft fur provides excellent magical protection and can be used to create enchanted gear. 25% drop chance - Echo Stone (Rare): A small stone imbued with the Jackalope''s power of vocal mimicry, allowing the user to replicate sounds once a day. 5% drop chance Looking at my new floor boss, I watch them curiously sniff around the forest, sitting on its haunches. The Jackalope stands around 4 feet tall, with soft, sleek fur that shimmers faintly with a silver or golden sheen under the light. Its grand, branching antlers glow faintly with an otherworldly aura, giving it a regal presence. Its sharp, intelligent eyes and alert, pointed ears make it seem constantly aware of its surroundings. As I observe, it suddenly turns toward me and tilts its head curiously. I recoil slightly. ¡°You can see me?!¡± The Jackalope nods. Gathering myself, I address it directly. ¡°Okay, um, Ms. Jackalope, you are now this floor¡¯s boss. You will only fight people carrying the item called [Lucky Rabbit''s Foot]. Do you understand?¡± She nods again, showing her understanding. A few moments of awkward silence pass before I speak up again. ¡°So, do you want a name? I''m not that great at naming things, but I can still give you one. You are the floor boss, after all.¡± She pauses for a second, then nods in agreement. Okay, naming a female jackalope¡ªthis should be easy, right? I pause for a few minutes, using all my brainpower to come up with something. Then, I addressed her. ¡°I will name you... Holly!¡± I declare loudly, my core sweating profusely from the strain of thinking so hard. She looks at me, her round eyes seemingly boring into my soul, but then she nods happily and starts jumping up and down in excitement, waving her small jackalope paws in the air. [Status Window Updated] I dismissed the system message, relieved that my newly appointed floor boss doesn''t hate me and, in fact, seems pleased with her new name. Leaving Holly to get acquainted with the first floor, I take a closer look at the layout. After some time, I realize something¡ªthe forest doesn¡¯t look as natural as it should. From my bird¡¯s-eye view, it looks like some idiot just threw seeds around and used magic to make them grow all at once. I should probably fix that. Another issue is that, for a dungeon, my monsters have absolutely no combat experience. Sure, I turned normal animals into monsters, but they haven¡¯t fought anything because they were only created recently. So, I¡¯ve come to a solution: I¡¯ll accelerate time on the first floor. This should jumpstart the ecosystem and help the monsters gain some much-needed combat practice through fighting, respawning, and trying again through friendly competition. With this idea in mind, I start pulling a steady amount of magic from my core and turn to Holly. ¡°Okay, Holly, I expect you to train hard during all of this and help your fellow monsters grow stronger as well!¡± Holly stands tall on her haunches, her ears raised in attention as she salutes with one paw, a strange sparkling in her eyes. And with that, I activate the magic and accelerate time across the entire first floor. For some reason, I have a strange feeling about this. chapter 3: A Completely Normal Field Trip I watch as time rapidly passes and how I alone am unaffected, as trees and vegetation grow and die, trees fall and rise, and animals and monsters engage in fights and various other competitions to grow stronger. I also see Holly, playing?, with all the rabbits turned into monsters. I watch as 2 years go by on my first floor as not even an hour goes by in real time. After seeing this, I stop the supply of my magic and bring the flow of time back to normal. After that, I looked around the first floor to check up on all my first floor monsters. The wolves now all have their own territories, the birds have their nests, and a bunch of other monsters roam the forest, and all the bunnies seem to be carrying weapons around? How did they even get those spears and bows? Looking around, I quickly find the culprit, Holly stands in a small meadow, showing a small army of rabbits how to thrust spears made from sticks and stones. Watching them all practicing, the first thing that comes to mind is a bunch of children fighting with sticks in someone''s backyard. ¡°It''s actually kind of cute, keep up the good work guys!¡± They all stop and salute me with their tiny rabbit paws then go back to training, with even more motivation. As I watch them, I get a mental message from the 5 [Cave Widows], they''ve run into a few humans. Rolland POV I shouldn''t have said anything, here I am, in the middle of the woods with Leah because I just had to open my big mouth! We were going to get the rest of the day off as well! ¡°Come on! We need to hurry up and get you to level 10 before the sun sets!¡±(Leah) Leah runs through the forest with her great sword and heavy armor clinking and clattering as she jumps up and down, oozing joy wherever she goes. How she runs in such heavy armor, I''ll never know. This all started when our party finished a local quest from the guild to clear out some slimes that wandered too close to town. Leah, our attacker and tank. She has long, fiery red hair that cascades down her back in a single, thick ponytail, tied neatly at the base of her head and extending all the way to her lower back. The vibrant color contrasts sharply against the polished, heavy metal armor she''s wearing, clinking as she moves, covering her body from shoulders to boots in protective steel. Despite the weight of her armor, her posture remains poised and confident, the ponytail swaying gently with every step she takes. Then we have May, the group''s ranger and scout. She has thick, curly black hair that tumbles down to her shoulders, framing her sharp, angular features. Her piercing eyes and defined cheekbones give her a determined, almost predatory look. She¡¯s clad in dark-tinted leather armor, its worn surface showing signs of battle. Her bow is slung casually over her back, its wood dark and polished, while an almost empty quiver rests at her hip, a few arrows left rattling softly with her steps. Her entire appearance gives off the impression of a seasoned hunter, ready for the next challenge despite the dwindling ammunition. And Liam, the group''s healer and support. He has short, tousled blonde hair that glints faintly in the sunlight, though it''s slightly disheveled from the journey. His white robes, once pristine, are now lightly dirtied at the edges from the long trek, with faint stains of dirt and dust marking the hem. He carries a short staff, worn but sturdy, strapped securely to one side of his hip. On the other side hangs a short sword, its polished surface hinting at minimal use, as though more of a precaution than a weapon he''s had to rely on. His overall appearance speaks of someone more accustomed to healing or magic than combat, yet prepared for anything the road may bring. Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere. And lastly, me, the party''s wizard. I have short, brown hair that often falls into my right eye, accentuated by my big, round glasses that magnify my gaze. My deep blue robes, though somewhat dirty from our travels, billow slightly around my small satchel bag with each step. Clutched in my hand is my tall, well-cared-for staff, its polished wood gleaming faintly in the light. Tucked securely into my belt is a small, weathered notebook filled with hastily scribbled spells and notes on simple magic theory, its pages dog-eared and stained from frequent use. Because of the quest, I managed to push myself most of the way through level 9. ¡°Hey, guys! I¡¯m almost level 10! Just a quest or two more, and I should level up! I might even get a new spell if I¡¯m lucky!¡± (Rolland) I hear Leah gasp, her eyes sparkling with excitement upon hearing this. That was when I realized I had just made a grave mistake. ¡°Really? That¡¯s great! Come on, let¡¯s go and get you leveled up right now!¡± (Leah) I recoil slightly as Leah leans forward, her face just inches away from mine. ¡°Ah, um, I think we''re good, actually. Right, guys?¡± (Rolland) I turn to my other party members, seeking an escape from this awkward situation, only to find them expertly avoiding my gaze. ¡°I would, but I should refill my quiver with some arrows. Most of them melted from the slimes. You two should go have some fun though, right, Liam?¡± (May) ¡°Oh, um, yeah, I just remembered I have to, umm, re-supply at the general store. Yeah. So you two can level up together.¡± (Liam) As I''m being dragged away, I glare at my betrayers, failing to notice the slightly flustered Leah muttering to herself about how she''s going to be alone with me. I could have sworn I even heard them call me oblivious! Me? Oblivious? And that¡¯s how I ended up here, in the middle of the woods with Leah, searching for any monsters to help push me to level 10. We walk through the forest south of town. The area is largely ignored by adventurers and doesn¡¯t even have an official name because there¡¯s almost nothing of value here. Most of the animals don¡¯t even absorb enough ambient magic to turn into monsters here. I glance over at Leah, who''s running ahead, scanning the surroundings. Judging by her lack of reaction, it seems like she hasn¡¯t spotted any monsters yet. I walk up to her and call out, ¡°Find anything?¡± (Rolland) Suddenly, she crouches down, dragging me to the ground with her. ¡°Shhh, I see something!¡± (Leah) she whispers, though not very quietly. I turn my head to see what she¡¯s looking at. In front of us, we spot five dog-sized spiders crawling across a small clearing, each dragging silk sacks of various sizes. Seeing this, I subtly raise my staff with my right hand and flip open my small notebook with my left, starting to cast a spell. Gathering my magic, I cast [Identify] on one of the spiders. I glance at its status page and turn to Leah. ¡°They¡¯re [Cave Widows], you know, those super common spiders we saw in the caves a while back? Not sure what they¡¯re doing here, though.¡± As we whisper about what to do, one of the [Cave Widows] turns and spots us. I prepare to attack, but instead of charging at us like most monsters, It and the others suddenly flee, dragging their sacks behind them. As I sit there, confused by what I just witnessed, Leah suddenly jumps up and starts running after the spiders. It takes me a moment to process what''s happening before I scramble to my feet and chase after her. After a few minutes of running, I finally catch up to her in another small clearing. Leah is standing still, looking around for any sign of the spiders. I take a few seconds to catch my breath, gasping for air as I glance around. ¡°Did you lose them? Wait¡ªwhy did you even chase them in the first place?¡± (Rolland) ¡°Rolland! Look over there! It''s some kind of massive door!¡± (Leah) I follow her gaze and, sure enough, there¡¯s a large archway towering before us with two heavy stone doors. The archway is covered from top to bottom in a series of unidentified runes and letters, carved deep into the stone. Thinking back to anything I might have heard about strange stone doors appearing out of nowhere, the only thing that comes to mind is a dungeon. But the nearest dungeon should be a month away! As I slowly approach the door, I quickly step back as it begins to open with a loud grinding noise, the runes on the archway glowing a deep red. "Okay, so it''s definitely a dungeon. We should probably head back to town and report this to the guild, Leah." (Rolland) I turn to Leah, expecting her to agree, only to see her walking toward the open door. "What are you doing?! We need to report this, not go inside!" (Rolland) I rush up to her, trying to stop her from going any further. "What? I''m just going to take a quick look around. Besides, are we really going to report a dungeon without checking it out first? I bet we''ll get a bigger reward, plus finder''s rights, if we bring back some information!" (Leah) I pause, surprised by how reasonable she sounds. That¡¯s...unusual for Leah. Maybe she did get injected with some spider venom after all? Still, what she¡¯s saying does make sense, so I finally give in. "Fine, but we have to be careful. Don''t wander too far from me, or I won''t be able to protect you." (Rolland) My wizard robes fluttering in the nonexistent wind After our brief exchange, we both step into the dungeon. Leah''s cheeks seem a little more flushed than before as she shyly looks away from me. She must be tired from all that running in that heavy armor. Let''s get this done quickly and head back to town. Chapter 4: An Otherworldly Dungeon Rolland pov We really shouldn¡¯t be doing this. As much sense as Leah made at the entrance, we should have at least gotten May and Liam before coming back. But we¡¯re here now, so we might as well continue. Peering through the massive stone doors into the dungeon, all I see is densely packed forest. Leah and I carefully make our way inside. We spend a few minutes quietly walking through the woods, occasionally spotting a few regular animals. ¡°I¡¯ve never heard of a dungeon like this one¡ªso open and expansive. From what I¡¯ve heard, they¡¯re usually dark tunnels or decrepit castles. And no monsters yet¡­ Stay alert, Leah.¡± (Rolland) Leah nods in agreement. Several more minutes pass when suddenly we hear rustling from a nearby bush. Leah pulls her greatsword from her back, and I prepare a simple attack spell, both of us watching the bush intently. Seconds go by, then two long ears slowly pop out from behind the leaves, twitching slightly as if aware of our movements. ¡°What? Is that¡­ a rabbit?¡± (Rolland) I watch as the rest of its head emerges from the bush, its small nose twitching as it looks at us. ¡°Aww, it¡¯s so cute!¡± (Leah) Leah lowers her greatsword and begins approaching the fluffy little bunny. ¡°Leah! Don¡¯t approach it¡ªsomething¡¯s off!¡± (Rolland) The rabbit glares at me, seemingly irritated by my suspicion. To my surprise, it pulls out a makeshift bow from under the bush and aims directly at me. Caught off guard, I hastily fired an [Arcane Bolt] while leaping to the side. The rabbit releases its arrow just as I hit the ground, the arrow whizzing past my head. I tumble to the ground, feeling my glasses fly off from the impact. Through my blurred vision, I see Leah charging toward the rabbit, swinging her sword. Frantically, I sift through the foliage, searching for my glasses as the sound of combat intensifies. Finally, I find them, but when I put them on, I realize they¡¯re cracked. With my vision fractured by the broken lenses, I raise my staff and notebook, trying to focus on aiming another [Arcane Bolt]. As I prepare my spell, I spot Leah¡¯s armor. It¡¯s covered in small cuts¡ªsome from arrows that barely missed, others from a flint knife the rabbit had pulled from its hip. Seeing my opportunity, I release the spell and watch as it connects with the rabbit. In an instant, the creature disintegrates into light particles. [Level up] ¡°What happened to it? Where did it go?¡± (Leah) I walk up behind Leah, glancing at the spot where the rabbit once stood. ¡°It¡¯s fine. Dungeon monsters turn into pure mana when they¡¯re defeated. That¡¯s why it disappeared.¡± (Rolland) I reach into my robes and pull out a spare pair of glasses, discarding the broken ones onto the dungeon floor, thinking to myself ¡®I should really get those things enchanted.¡¯ Looking down, I see a system pop-up displaying the loot dropped by the rabbit: Rabbit Hide (Common) - A soft hide, useful for crafting basic armor or selling for a small profit. Sharp Flint Shard (Uncommon) - A slightly magical shard from a flint dagger, useful for crafting or as a basic tool. I dismiss the notification and collect the loot, placing it in the small satchel at my side. Turning to Leah, I speak with a hint of concern. This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version. ¡°Are you hurt, Leah? I saw the rabbit get a few good hits in with that flint dagger.¡± (Rolland) Leah flushes slightly, her expression shifting to one of worry as she frantically checks on me. ¡°No, no, I¡¯m fine, only a few scratches. But what about you? Are you okay? The arrow¡ªdid it hit you?¡± (Leah) I put my hand on her shoulders and push her back slightly. ¡°Im fine, we should probably leave though, I think we have enough to make a decent report to the guild, I even leveled up from that.¡±(Rolland) With that exchange, we quickly make our way out of the dungeon, finding the entrance after only a few minutes of running. On the way back, me and Leah discuss what we''re going to say to the guild during our report. After an hour of walking, we finally reach town where we immediately start heading towards the guild. I tell Leah that she should go and get the rest of the group and get her cuts checked out by Liam while she''s there. As she does that, I go and talk with one of the female receptionists and soon meet with this guild branch''s leader, Dorin. Sitting in front of Dorin is... well, intimidating. For one, he¡¯s built like a giant¡ªhe¡¯s got to be about 6¡¯8¡±, though it¡¯s hard to tell with him seated behind a fancy oak desk overflowing with stacks of papers. His beard is neatly kept, and his slicked-back brown hair only adds to his imposing presence. Above him, mounted on the wall, is a massive spear, easily as tall as he is. It looks more like a hunk of iron shaped into a spear than an actual weapon¡ªbut who am I to judge? Second, from what I¡¯ve heard, Dorin used to be the leader of a veteran adventurer group called Dawn. Apparently, they all retired... all except Dorin, from what I can see. After sitting in silence for a moment, I begin telling Dorin about what Leah and I found. ¡°So, let me get this straight... You found a dungeon an hour''s walk into the forest south of town, and you thought it was a good idea to just dive right in without telling anyone? And then... you were attacked by a rabbit monster with a bow? You Seriously expect me to believe this?¡±(Dorin) I lean over the desk, frantically searching through my satchel. "It''s true! I have proof¡ªI got a few dungeon drops from that rabbit monster!" (Rolland) After finding what I was looking for, I pulled out the Rabbit Hide (Common) and the Sharp Flint Shard (Uncommon) from my bag and placed them on the table. "Check them yourself, and you''ll see they''re dungeon drops." (Rolland) I slide the items across the table in front of Dorin. He grunts in amusement and reaches below his desk, pulling out a fancy-looking monocle. I recognize it as a magical tool the guild often uses to identify items and monster parts, much more accurate than my simple [Identify] spell. I watch as he brings it to his eye and examines the items for a good few seconds. "Well, they''re definitely dungeon drops, so I''ll believe you for now. I''ll have a scouting team sent out in a day or two to confirm if a dungeon has manifested in the area. If it¡¯s real, you and your adventuring party will get finders'' rights." (Dorin) "This means you and your party will be given priority access, skipping the queue to enter the dungeon at any time. You''ll also be exempt from the entry tax and receive a small post-tax cut at the end of every 2 weeks. Does this sound agreeable, Mr. Rolland?" (Dorin) As I ponder the benefits of finders'' rights, I conclude that this offer is better than most. ¡°Sure, that sounds great! It¡¯s a bit better than usual, actually. What made you decide to give us a cut of the entry tax?¡± (Rolland) ¡°Dungeons are rare, and as far as I know, this is the only one within a month''s travel by carriage! I¡¯d be surprised if people didn¡¯t start flocking to our town because of this dungeon. So, it¡¯s the least I can do for what could be a figurative goldmine.¡± (Dorin) After a bit of small talk, I leave the guild master¡¯s office and head down to the lobby, where I find the rest of the group. Leah now has a small bandage on her cheek from the cut she got during the battle. I walk up to them and greet everyone. ¡°Good news, everyone! The guild master is sending a scouting team to check out the dungeon soon. Once they confirm it, we¡¯ll get our finders'' rights¡ªand we even got a better deal than usual!¡± I say enthusiastically. ¡°I can¡¯t believe you two found a dungeon after we got rid of¡ªuh, I mean, after you two went to level up,¡± May says with a grin. ¡°Yeah, you should have been there,¡± I reply, throwing a little venom into my tone as I glare at her for letting me get dragged off in the first place. ¡°So, what was the dungeon like? Think we stand a chance?¡± Liam asks, sounding curious. ¡°I think we¡¯ll be fine. Leah and I were caught off guard the first time, but now that we know what to expect, we should be okay. Plus, we¡¯ll all be there together. We just have to wait for Dorin¡¯s team to scout it out before we can delve in.¡± I reassure him. ¡°Are you sure?¡± Leah asks, a bit uncertain. ¡°Yup! So let¡¯s get some rest and start preparing for the next few days,¡± I say confidently. With that, we all split up and head to our respective accommodations to rest and recover. Chapter 5: 2nd Floor Construction And Interruptions! ¡°Well, that was interesting,¡± I said to absolutely no one. The first people in my dungeon get ambushed by a single rabbit¡ªI thought they were playing, not training to fight people! Not that I have a problem with it, I guess the adventurers will just have to work a bit harder for a [Lucky Rabbit''s Foot]. Okay, what should I work on next? The next floor? Wait! I need to fix the borders on the first floor first. Looking over at them, they¡¯re just big stone walls. While that¡¯s not the worst thing ever, I¡¯m going for more of an ¡®entered another world¡¯ vibe, and the stone walls don¡¯t exactly fit the aesthetic. After some thought, I decided to cast a large-scale illusion on the edge of the first floor, making it look like the floor continues into the horizon. Instead of a solid wall, I change it to a super-stretchy, thin, but resilient film so that people don¡¯t just crash into an invisible wall hidden by the illusion. With that minor tweak out of the way, I turn my attention to creating the second floor. I can¡¯t think of much else to improve on the first floor, other than maybe making my illusions more realistic¡ªbut that¡¯s easy. Besides, no one¡¯s even properly challenged it yet, except for those two adventurers who just left. With those thoughts bouncing around in my head (core?), I begin excavating the space for the second floor, using a bit of manual digging and a lot of space magic. How big should I make this one? The first floor is about 10 square miles, which sounds like a lot until you realize that someone who¡¯s fit could walk that in just a few hours. And in a world full of monsters, I doubt there are many unfit adventurers, especially ones brave enough to delve into my dungeon. I think I¡¯ll go big for this next one¡ªreally big. Let¡¯s say around 100 square miles. Adventurers will start in the center, so they¡¯ll need to walk about 50 miles in any direction to reach the edge, which would take about a day and a half if someone walked in a straight line from edge to edge if you include breaks. This way, they¡¯ll have to camp inside my dungeon to explore it properly. Plus, I can make each floor progressively larger. I mean, I¡¯m trying to prepare them for big threats, right? What better way than to create an entire world for them to explore, complete with disasters of my own making? It¡¯s a win-win. I get to design cool monsters and mini-worlds, and adventurers get to fight giant creatures without the risk of permanent death¡ªwhile also collecting tons of treasure! Now, what should the theme of the second floor be? The first is a forest, but I don¡¯t have many blueprints to work with yet. Sure, my [Cave Widows] have been out gathering new designs, but they can only cover so much ground. I could create some birds to travel farther, but I¡¯d have to make them bigger to carry more back, which would make it harder for them to return unnoticed. Until I figure something better out, I¡¯ll have to work with what I¡¯ve got. As I sift through my list of blueprints, I find a few new animals and many more plants, but what catches my eye are the numerous fungi blueprints. Maybe I could go for a magical mushroom forest? With some mushroom people? I don¡¯t have any better ideas, so let¡¯s do it! Creating the second floor starts out much like the first: a thick layer of dirt, along with tons of plants and trees. But instead of adding animals or monsters right away, I speed up time, letting only the trees and plants grow. Instead of a typical forest like the first floor or the one outside the dungeon, I aim for a dark and damp woodland, shaded by a large canopy of trees, because from what I remember, that''s the best environment for mushrooms. After accelerating time for a bit, I stop powering my magic and examine the forest. After about a day of manually making it darker and more humid, it¡¯s complete. Nice! Now I just have to add some regular animals and decide which mushrooms I want to populate my new dark forest. As I look at the different options, I realize something: almost everything I¡¯ve made so far is incredibly flammable. Sure, I doubt people would purposely set fire to the forest, but it only takes one idiot to ruin the fun for everyone. And while it wouldn¡¯t affect me too much¡ªeverything would just respawn once they all died or left¡ªthere¡¯s still the potential for chaos. So, I go back over my two very flammable floors and place some enchantments on them to make them a bit harder to burn down. Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. After that, I return to the second floor and start looking at my options again. Going down my list, I select a variety of mushrooms to place around my second floor. Here are just a few I plan to add: Lifebloom - Description: A vibrant green mushroom that thrives in nutrient-rich soil, resembling a flower. - Uses: Known for its healing properties, it can be used to brew restorative potions. Dreamspore - Description: A small, iridescent mushroom that releases spores when disturbed, inducing vivid dreams. - Uses: Often used in dream-based magic or for peaceful sleep aids. Wispwhistle - Description: A tall, slender mushroom that produces a soft, melodic sound when the wind passes through it. - Uses: Utilized in enchantments for sound-based magic or to soothe restless spirits. Embercap - Description: A fiery orange mushroom that seems to glow as if it¡¯s on fire. - Uses: Can be harvested for ingredients in fire-related potions or charms. The last mushroom allows adventurers to easily set everything ablaze for a quick victory. Who knew I could find so many different mushrooms in one forest? And I plan to add many more. Do I know what a [Soulshroom] is? No, I don¡¯t! Will I add it anyway? Of course! For the next few hours, I spread a variety of mushrooms throughout the entire second floor. Midway through, I feel someone enter my dungeon¡ªor rather, it feels like multiple people have entered at the same time, so it¡¯s like one group. Deciding it¡¯s time for a break from working on the second floor, I turn my attention to the new group that just entered my dungeon. It¡¯s a party of five, and from the get-go, I can tell they¡¯re more experienced than the last two adventurers who came through. All of them are lightly armored, wearing green cloaks. Each carries a bow, quiver, and short sword. One of them, probably the leader¡ªjudging by the red armband on his right arm¡ªis holding a palm-sized stone and speaking into it continuously. I move closer to listen in on the guy talking to the rock. ¡°This is Fred. I¡¯ve confirmed that a dungeon has manifested in the woods south of town. From now on, I will be recording my progress and observations about the dungeon using the standard issue recording stone provided to me. My squad and I will now begin our scouting mission under orders from Guild Master Dorin.¡± (Fred) He then tucks the stone away in a hidden pocket beneath his cloak. Man, talk about professionals. Are these guys guild agents or something? I take a step back, watching as they make their way through the forest cautiously, bows drawn, constantly on alert for enemies. A few minutes pass without any signs of monsters, but with my dungeon senses, I spot two rabbit archers silently sneaking up behind them, drawing their makeshift bows. Meanwhile, a lone rabbit spearman approaches from the front, making no effort at stealth. The squad immediately notices the spearman. One member of the group quickly turns to spot the hidden archers among the bushes. A warning is shouted, and the battle begins. The two rabbit archers get ready to fire from behind while the spearman charges head-on. Fred, the leader, barks a few orders, quickly drops his bow, and draws his short sword to meet the spearman¡¯s charge. Two of his squadmates closest to the rabbit archers do the same, drawing their swords, while the remaining two guild members keep their bows aimed at the archers. The rabbit archers release their arrows, but the guild members in green cloaks effortlessly bat the shoddy projectiles out of the air. The two remaining guild members fire their own arrows, scoring direct hits on the archers. Meanwhile, I¡¯m just standing here, watching it all unfold. Man, I could really use some popcorn right about now. Fred engages the spear-wielding rabbit in combat, deflecting its spear to the ground, where it gets stuck in the dirt. With one swift swing, Fred cuts the rabbit in half, its body dissolving into light particles. The rest of the squad makes short work of the archer rabbits, cutting them down with their swords and arrows. Once the fight ends, they collect their loot and regroup in a small clearing nearby. Time passes as they continue exploring the first floor, fighting off trained rabbits and the occasional regular monster¡ªwolves, boars, and wildcats. All the while, they¡¯re making reports and cataloging their findings. After an hour or two, the group heads back to the entrance. They pause to review their loot: no [Lucky Rabbit¡¯s Foot] this time, but they managed to gather a bunch of primitive weapons, arrows, and animal skins. And with that, they exit my dungeon. Chapter 6: A Slight Problem As I watch the group of guild scouts exit my dungeon, I return to the second floor to continue its steady construction. Now, where was I? Right, I had just spread a bunch of mushrooms throughout the forest. Next up¡ªmushroom people! From what I¡¯ve read from the system, I should be able to give quests, but I don¡¯t really want to hand them out manually unless I feel like it. That¡¯s why I¡¯ll make a bunch of mushroom people to handle that for me! Now, how do I even make mushroom people? I guess I¡¯ll start by modifying some mushrooms and see what happens. Let¡¯s begin with the [Lifebloom] mushroom and work from there. Finding a cluster of [Lifebloom] mushrooms, they resemble regular fungi, except their caps look like green flower buds sprouting from the ground. I channel magic into them, envisioning little mushroom people. Slowly, they begin to transform. Over the next few minutes, I watch as they sprout small arms ending in nubs, black beady eyes form beneath their large caps, and finally, tiny legs emerge¡ªalso ending in nubs¡ªso small it looks like they shouldn¡¯t be able to hold their own weight. I watch them emerge from the ground one by one, looking at themselves, each other, and the surrounding forest. Success! Now I just need to do this to the rest of the mushrooms and speed up time to complete the floor. Over the course of an entire day, I go around infusing magic into different types of mushrooms. The next day, I observe my forest, now bustling with tiny mushroom people of all kinds, playing together in harmony. They band together, using magic to create a statue of a red orb. Is that supposed to be me? I guess, since I created them, they probably see me as some sort of god. An hour later, they finish the statue and start dancing around it, holding hands and spinning with joy and reverence. They¡¯re only about three feet tall, with squishy-looking mycelium bodies, and they all seem so happy and innocent. Nice! Now, how about I speed up time and let them grow as a civilization? Stepping back, I use my magic to accelerate time by a few years and watch them grow at super speed. Their first few years are wonderful¡ªdifferent mushroom species come together to build a thriving village under the forest canopy. Some construct homes in the patches of sunlight filtering through, while others settle in the deep shadows of massive trees because, as I¡¯ve learned from watching them, some of the mushrooms can¡¯t survive direct sunlight. More years pass, and some of the mushroom people start to die of old age, decomposing into the soil and allowing new mushroom people to sprout from the ground. This cycle continues, and the mushroom people live in peace. But the longer I watch, the more I notice something unsettling. The mushroom people emerging from the decomposed bodies of their predecessors seem... off. They¡¯re not as intelligent as they once were, and it seems like they share one consciousness that¡¯s being split more and more with each new death and rebirth. The peace that once flourished among them is growing strained, and they¡¯re becoming increasingly violent and confused. Only the [Lifebloom] mushrooms seem unaffected by this spreading madness. Uh-oh¡­ this isn¡¯t good. What¡¯s going wrong here? As I continue to watch, the situation deteriorates. The [Lifebloom] mushrooms do their best to maintain the fragile peace, but the other mushroom people, in their madness, begin to attack them, driving them away. Okay... let¡¯s figure out what went wrong. I open up several system windows, reading through the relevant information. After some digging, I find the problem: when I first turned the mushrooms sentient, they all gained souls. But when they die, instead of respawning or having their souls ascend or escape, their souls stay within the body, sinking into the ground, and new mushrooms sprout from the remnants. This splits the soul among the new mushrooms. Another thing worth mentioning: apparently, sentient races created by a dungeon have a harder time respawning. This means I¡¯ll need to limit their respawns to only a select few individuals of that specific race. Anyway... This cycle keeps repeating, with each split making the souls more fragmented. Eventually, the fragmented souls lead to insanity, causing the mushroom people to seek out other sentient life to absorb their souls. The [Lifebloom] mushrooms, being attuned to the life attribute, are somehow able to balance and heal their torn souls over time, which explains why they¡¯re the only ones unaffected by the madness.This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings. Closing the system windows, I stop the accelerated time and survey the changed second floor¡ªa place once full of happiness, now twisted into a realm of madness. The [Lifebloom] mushroom people have retreated to a village built in the sunlight, far from the dark, dense canopy of the forest. As I wander through the now-ominous woods, I witness zombified mushroom people clawing their way out of the earth, shrieking as their decaying caps hit the damp air. The animals that once lived peacefully alongside them now flee in terror, or meet a worse fate¡ªkilled and parasitized by fungi, their bodies turned into puppets to aid in the hunt for souls. Deep in the heart of the forest, I find a mushroom person, grotesquely mutated beyond recognition. It shrieks and wails, locked in a violent struggle for control over its own rotting mycelium body. Name: [Soulshroom Hive Mind] Type: Undead (Fungal Entity) Rank: Legendary Level: 45 HP: 1000 / 1000 MP: 500 / 500
Abilities: Soul Drain (Passive): - The Hive Mind constantly siphons the life force of nearby creatures, draining HP from all within 10 meters. This energy is used to sustain the decaying body and fuel its abilities. Radius: 10 meters Effect: Drains HP, regenerates 1% of Hive Mind¡¯s HP per creature affected. Whispers of the Damned: - The Hive Mind channels the tortured souls it has absorbed, unleashing a cacophony of voices that causes confusion and fear in its enemies. Those who hear the whispers may become disoriented or experience vivid hallucinations of the dead. Range: 20 meters Effect: Causes fear, hallucinations, and disorientation for 10 seconds. Cooldown: 60 seconds Zombified Decay (Passive): - The body of the Hive Mind is in a constant state of decay, shedding spores and rotting flesh. Any creature that comes into contact with the falling spores risks becoming infected, leading to slow zombification over time unless cured. Effect: Applies ¡°Decay¡± status, reducing maximum HP over time. If left untreated for 5 minutes, the victim turns into a mindless zombie under the control of the Hive Mind. Radius: 5 meters Soul Rebirth: - Once its HP drops below 30%, the Hive Mind can sacrifice a portion of the souls it holds, regenerating 50% of its total HP instantly. Cooldown: Once per battle Echo of the Fallen: - The Hive Mind can momentarily resurrect one of the souls it has absorbed to fight by its side for 20 seconds. This fallen warrior fights with 50% of its original strength. Cooldown: 60 seconds Limit: One soul at a time Putrid Burst: - The Hive Mind releases a burst of decay, sending out a wave of rotting spores and necrotic energy in a 15-meter radius. Enemies hit by the burst take heavy poison damage and suffer from the "Rotting" status, which lowers their defense and HP regeneration. Damage: 50-70 (Poison) Cooldown: 20 seconds
Resistances: - Poison-based Attacks (Immune) - Psychic-based Attacks (High) - Necrotic Attacks (Immune) Weaknesses: - Fire-based Attacks (High) - Holy/Light-based Magic (Extreme) - Physical Damage (Moderate)
Description: The Soulshroom Hive Mind is a terrifying fungal entity born from the collective will of countless souls. Its body is in a perpetual state of zombification, a mass of decaying flesh and fungal growths. Spore clouds drift constantly from its form, and its movements are slow but relentless, driven by the minds of those it has consumed. These souls fuel its low intelligence, leaving it a sinister embodiment of insanity and madness. It haunts crypts, battlefields, and places of great death, drawn to the fading life force of those nearby, ever seeking to add to its grotesque collection. I may have made a slight mistake. Chapter 7: More Blueprints! I quickly leave the second-floor forest, giving myself a moment to reflect on the nightmare monster I just accidentally created. Well, it¡¯s a bit too strong for the second floor. Holly is capped at level 20 because I didn¡¯t want her to be overpowered for the first floor. Looking back at the [Soulshroom Hive Mind]''s status, I start debating whether I should lower its level. Maybe I should keep it as is? It has a (High) weakness to fire, like most mushrooms, and an (Extreme) weakness to holy/light magic. If adventurer groups are anything like those in the video games from my world, they should have at least one priest or healer on their team. Plus, they''ll probably have more than one person exploring, so it should be fine, right? One thing I should definitely fix, though, is the zombified mushroom people¡¯s hive mind range. If I leave it as is, the moment a human is spotted, every zombified mushroom on the floor would swarm them¡ªand that¡¯s no fun. Looking over the second floor, I reduce the hive mind range to about a mile. This way, they could still swarm adventurers if they''re not careful, but it¡¯d remain a decent challenge. As I examine the normal zombified mushrooms'' status, I notice they''re not very fast, and their stubby legs aren¡¯t helping, nor are their rotting mycelium bodies. Now it¡¯s time to have a chat with the [Lifebloom] mushroom people. Heading toward their village, I see it''s in surprisingly good condition. From what I¡¯ve observed, they were forced to abandon their old town about five years ago (in their time) and rebuild here in a large field outside the forest. Normally, mushrooms can¡¯t survive direct sunlight¡ªthey¡¯d dry out¡ªbut the [Lifebloom] mushrooms seem perfectly fine. On the other hand, the zombified mushrooms have become even weaker in sunlight due to their decaying bodies, which is why they usually burrow underground during the day and emerge at night. Looking for the [Lifebloom] leader, I eventually find a mushroom person dressed in clothes made of large leaves and grasses, with a bushy mustache made of thin mycelium strands. He walks around the town, speaking with other residents. As I appear before him, his beady black eyes widen, and he falls to his hands and knees in prayer. ¡°All hail the mighty god! He has returned to us after our long and arduous trial!¡± (Mushy) What? I have absolutely no idea what he just said. Are there system logs I can check? A notification pops up, and a log appears for me to read, but before I can, the mushroom leader starts talking again. ¡°What do you require of us, great one? Should we build another statue in your image? I regret to inform you that our old statue was lost, but we will accept any divine punishment you deem necessary!¡± (Mushy) I glance around and see the other mushrooms bowing in my direction in reverence. I should probably say something now, shouldn¡¯t I? ¡°I¡¯m not here to punish you, so you can all calm down. Umm, I actually wanted to ask you all for a favor. By the way, what¡¯s your name?¡± ¡°Forgive me, my lord! My humble name is Mushy, of Lifebloom Town! You need not ask¡ªwe will carry out any task you give us!¡± (Mushy) ¡°Uhh, yeah, sure. Anyway, I just wanted to let you know that, sometime in the future, people called adventurers will come and explore this world. Your task will be to help them by giving them quests to complete.¡± ¡°A prophecy! I, Mushy, will spread the word among our people to fulfill the new purpose you¡¯ve given us!¡± (Mushy) The nearby mushroom people quickly scatter, spreading my words with perfect clarity. They don¡¯t even mess up a single word, which is honestly surprising. Usually, things like this get so garbled that the message turns into something completely different. Maybe the next sentient race I create should be more humanoid to avoid accidentally making more zombies. So, what should I do now? The third floor? But people haven¡¯t even finished exploring my first floor yet. While contemplating my next steps, I realize there¡¯s currently no way down to my second floor. What should I do? Spiral stairs? But Holly roams around the first floor, so adventurers would have to defeat her first and then wander around until they find the stairs. That just sounds like a hassle for everyone involved. Plus, it¡¯s too lame for my dungeon. After spending a few hours brainstorming and failing to create a cool elevator, I came to a much easier solution.Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site. Maybe I should try to make portals! Just think about how cool that would be! Besides, designing a foolproof elevator with no experience is a lot harder than I expected. For the portals, I could create a drop item that opens a portal from the first floor to the second and vice versa. I need the item to look nice. I envision some kind of key made from a unique material, but I don¡¯t have anything like that at the moment. If only I could send my monsters further out to gather more blueprints for me! As I say this out loud, my thoughts drift back to the idea of portals. Wait, couldn¡¯t I open some portals to random locations and have my monsters collect blueprints from there? Summoning my five [Cave Widows], I look at them. Maybe I should modify them again? Or perhaps transform them into completely new monsters, since I don¡¯t want to manually open portals for them every time they go collecting. As I survey the five lined-up spiders, I decide to try turning them all into new monsters. Focusing my magic on the image of portal-making spiders, I begin infusing them with it. I watch as the gray spiders slowly transform into an obsidian black, their bodies covered in fine cracks that pulse with chaotic blue energy. The transformation halts, and their status windows appear before me. [Status Window]
Name: [Portal Weaver Spider] Type: Beast (Arachnid) Rank: Epic Level: 35 HP: 800 / 800 MP: 300 / 300
Abilities: Portal Shift: - The spider can create a shimmering portal that randomly teleports itself or a target within 30 feet to a different location in the world. The location is random unless they have previously visited the location and may place them in danger or safety. Cooldown: 1 minute Web Trap: - The Portal Weaver can create nearly invisible webs to ensnare enemies, reducing movement speed by 75% for 15 seconds. Cooldown: 10 seconds Venomous Bite: - A vicious bite that inflicts 20 poison damage immediately and an additional 10 poison damage over 5 seconds. Cooldown: 5 seconds Portal Surge: - The spider can channel energy from its portals, creating a shockwave that knocks back all enemies within a 15-foot radius. Damage: 30 (Bludgeoning) Cooldown: 20 seconds Cloak of Space: - The spider can bend space to hide itself, becoming nearly invisible for 10 seconds or until it attacks. Cooldown: 30 seconds Webbed Minions: - Summons small spiderlings that fight alongside it for 30 seconds. These minions have low health but can inflict minor damage and slow enemies. Cooldown: 45 seconds
Resistances: - Poison Resistance (High) - Dark Magic Resistance (Moderate) - Space Magic Resistance (High) Weaknesses: - Light-based Spells (Moderate) - Ground-based Attacks (Moderate) ¡°Nice! Now go find me some cool new blueprints!¡± I watch as the blue cracks along their bodies begin to glow. Suddenly, a chaotic portal bursts into life, constantly swirling and becoming increasingly unstable the longer it remains open. It then starts to suck each spider in before they can even attempt to escape its pull. As they disappear, the portals snap shut, sending small blue sparks flying in all directions. Now, I wait for the epic blueprints to start rolling in! Just then, I receive a notification that two of my spiders have died and are waiting to respawn. ¡°What happened?¡± I pull up the system logs I learned about earlier and begin to investigate the cause of their deaths. The first spider fell into a volcano, burning to death. The second appeared in the middle of the ocean and was eaten by a massive sea monster. I check where the other spiders ended up. One teleported to a massive mountain range, while the second found itself in an enormous library with multiple floors filled with countless books and expertly designed architecture. This spider turns itself invisible and sneaks around as librarians walk by, organizing books of all kinds. The last living spider appeared in a vast underground city, where massive stone pillars that once stretched from floor to ceiling are now mostly cracked and lay scattered across the ground. The ancient city is old and crumbling, overgrown with plant life and overrun by a few monsters. Seeing where all the spiders ended up, I jump for joy as I watch them start to explore their new locations. Now that they¡¯ve been there, they should be able to return at any time for new blueprints after their adventures. Chapter 8: Hangout session I spend the next few hours reviewing the first and second floors, thinking about what I can add before adventurers start showing up. It won''t be long now, since those guild members have likely already reported my existence to the guild master¡ªDorin, or whatever his name was. The spider from the library is the first to return. It brought back a collection of simple books it found after sneaking into a backroom, along with some high-quality writing utensils and paper. It didn¡¯t find much else, as it had to sneak around without getting caught by the library staff. Next up is the spider from the mountain range. It returned with several new plants and some rare metals, and even managed to capture a massive bird of prey to turn into a blueprint. But the most exciting thing it brought back was these glowing crystals called [Lunaris Shards]. Apparently, they collect and store moonlight, causing them to glow in the dark. I¡¯m thinking of using these shards to make the portal keys so people can move between floors. I''ll also enchant the keys so they bind to the person who first obtains them, preventing anyone who hasn¡¯t beaten Holly from using them. Additionally, I¡¯ll set it up so only the key¡¯s owner can activate the portal, ensuring that others can¡¯t bypass the floors by using someone else¡¯s key. It takes me about thirty minutes to craft the keys, enchant them with the portal magic, and set them as a reward for defeating Holly. With that done, I take another look at my first and second floors. I figure I should spruce them up a bit. After all, what¡¯s the point of exploring my dungeon if there¡¯s nothing interesting to discover? Right now, both floors are just forests filled with monsters. This is where the third spider¡¯s blueprints come into play. In the ruins it explored, it found a ton of old, broken-down tools and artifacts. The good thing is that, since I¡¯m in a dungeon, I can restore these relics to perfect condition. I¡¯m not entirely sure how it works, but based on what I¡¯ve read from the system, it''s just one of the perks dungeons have. I use the destroyed underground city as a reference and add a few secret ruins across both dungeon floors, sprinkling in some of the magic tools the spider found. I spend a few hours scattering ruins of varying sizes throughout the floors, filling them with simple clockwork traps that the spider discovered and a few pitfall traps I made myself. Then, I cover the entrances with either dense foliage or minor illusions. With that done, the only other thing I can think of is implementing a weather system. For now, I¡¯ll stick with rain on the first and second floors, saving other weather effects for the larger floors later on. Creating the weather system isn¡¯t difficult¡ªI just need to enchant the ceiling to make it rain once or twice every other day. After I finish putting the enchantments in place, I look around and can¡¯t think of anything else to add. The adventurers should be showing up in about a day or two, and I¡¯ve done almost everything I can think of. Maybe I¡¯ll spend some time with Holly and the [Lifebloom] mushrooms. I haven''t really interacted with them much beyond assigning them their tasks. Scanning the first floor, I find Holly digging out a large burrow near the back of the massive lake on the northern side of the floor. As I arrive, Holly pops her head out of her burrow. "Hey, Holly, how¡¯s it going?" Holly brings a paw to her face in a thinking gesture. After a moment, she nods. Even though Holly can¡¯t speak, as my dungeon monster, she can still convey ideas and emotions clearly enough. "Yeah, it might be a little boring for now, but there¡¯ll be plenty of people showing up soon, so stay on your paws." Hearing this, Holly gets excited and gestures for me to follow her into the burrow. "You want to show me around your burrow? Sure, sounds fun. Maybe after you give me the tour, I¡¯ll take you down and show you the second floor. What do you think?" Holly nods at my suggestion and leads me into her burrow. We walk through a long, winding tunnel before arriving at the main chamber. I wasn¡¯t sure what to expect, but it¡¯s mostly an empty room. There are no desks or furniture, but animal skins cover the ground, likely used as bedding or rugs¡ªprobably drops from monsters during the sped-up time period. Along one wall, Holly has an array of homemade spears, bows, and other primitive weapons. The other walls have several tunnels branching off. When I ask Holly about them, she explains that they stretch across the entire floor, allowing her to escape easily or reach anyone carrying the [Lucky Rabbit¡¯s Foot].This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. Following Holly through some of the tunnels, we pop up in various locations across the first floor. After exploring the first floor from Holly¡¯s perspective, I decide to take her to the second floor to see the [Lifebloom] mushrooms and the surrounding forest during the day. The portal opens just a short walk away from the [Lifebloom] mushroom town. Holly leaps through and immediately takes off at full speed, reaching the open gates within seconds before slowing down as she enters. As Holly strolls through the town, taking in the sight of houses and small businesses, I spot Mushy. He''s rushing towards us, his stubby legs working overtime. When he reaches us, he quickly bows to Holly, then turns to me and drops to his knees, clasping his short mushroom hands in prayer. ¡°We welcome the great one and his divine beast! How may my humble self serve you both!¡± (Mushy) Divine beast? I guess he''s referring to Holly. I mean, he''s not entirely wrong¡ªshe is the first floor boss, so that¡¯s close enough, right? Anyway, Mushy is still on the ground, and now the surrounding mushroom people are starting to bow too. I didn¡¯t notice it earlier, but it seems like Mushy is the only one who can see me. Maybe it¡¯s because he¡¯s the mayor of the [Lifebloom] mushroom town? That sounds plausible enough, so I¡¯ll stick with that until proven otherwise. But I should probably respond soon. ¡°Hello, Mushy. I¡¯m just here to show Holly around the second floor for a bit. Hope you don¡¯t mind.¡± ¡°Of course not! In fact, allow me to show you both around my town!¡± (Mushy) Holly nods at the offer, and with that, we start our tour. Mushy shows us the various shops run by the different [Lifebloom] mushrooms, and Holly gets free handouts of fried veggies from every food stall we pass by. As the tour continues, I start to zone out and think about the [Lifebloom] mushrooms. How have they survived this whole time? Sure, from what I¡¯ve seen, they can use a bit of magic, but surviving all those mushroom zombies? I think the town gets attacked every few weeks too, so I¡¯m really not sure how they¡¯ve managed. Maybe I should check their system windows and see. Realizing this, I start pulling up various system windows to get a sense of their average stats. As I scan their abilities, I¡¯m stunned. ¡°What are these abilities!?¡±

[Status Window]
Name: [Lifebloom Myconid] Type: [Plant] (Fungal Creature) Rank: [Rare] Level: 25 HP: 600 / 600 MP: 400 / 400
Abilities: - Blooming Heal: The Lifebloom Myconid releases healing spores that restore 100 HP to all allies within a 10-meter radius. Cooldown: 20 seconds - Spore Shield: It creates a barrier of thick spores that absorbs 50% of incoming damage for 10 seconds. The barrier also heals the Myconid for 50 HP over time while active. Cooldown: 30 seconds - Nature¡¯s Embrace: The Myconid summons tendrils of living fungi to wrap around a target, healing them for 50 HP per second for 5 seconds. Can also be used to immobilize an enemy, dealing 10 damage per second instead of healing. Cooldown: 15 seconds - Lifebloom Burst: The Myconid releases a burst of life energy, instantly healing all plants and creatures within a 15-meter radius for 200 HP. This also causes any nearby plant-based enemies to grow hostile and fight alongside the Myconid for 20 seconds. Cooldown: 1 minute - Regenerative Spores (Passive): Constantly releases spores that regenerate 10 HP per second for all allies within a 5-meter radius. This passive also affects the Myconid itself. - Fungal Rejuvenation: The Lifebloom Myconid can sacrifice 50 MP to cleanse all negative status effects from an ally or itself. Cooldown: 10 seconds - Life Surge: Once per battle, the Myconid can release its full energy in a massive burst, restoring 50% HP to all allies in the area and reviving any recently fallen allies with 25% HP. Cooldown: Once per battle
Resistances: - Poison (Immune) - Nature-based Magic (High) - Mind Control (Moderate) Weaknesses: - Fire-based Magic (High) - Ice-based Magic (Moderate) "These healing abilities are insane! No wonder they¡¯re fine¡ªthere¡¯s almost nothing in the entire dungeon that can even hurt them!" Chapter 9: Dungeon Prep Rolland POV As we all split up inside the guild, I step outside and begin making my way home. It''s already late¡ªthe moon is out, and the stars are starting to dot the sky. I take my time enjoying the cool night air after a long day of slime-hunting quests and an unexpected dungeon delve, thinking about what books on dungeons, if any, I have at home. I''m sure I have at least one, but it''s probably collecting dust on some forgotten shelf or in a box somewhere. After a few more minutes of walking, I arrived in front of a rusting iron gate. Reaching into my bag, I pull out a small ring of keys. Flipping through the identical copper ones, I grab one, hoping it''s the right key. It is not. After five minutes of trying key after key, the last one finally does the trick, and the gate creaks open, squeaking loudly in the quiet night. I close and lock it behind me, then head toward the stone tower¡ªmy home¡ªthat''s fallen into some disrepair after years of neglect. It¡¯s not quite as grand as the house my parents had near the capital during the good days, but it¡¯s mine now, and that has to count for something. A short hike through the overgrown lawn brings me to the front door, where I fumble with the devilish ring of keys again until the lock finally clicks open. I step inside, kicking off my dirty boots. As I enter, I glance toward the small console table by the door. I lean my staff against the wall, my eyes settling on a lone framed photo resting on the table. In the picture, a tall man with shaggy brown hair and a neatly trimmed beard stands beside a shorter woman with long blonde hair that flows out of sight. My gaze lingers on the photo for a moment before I speak softly, to no one in particular. "I''m back, Mom, Dad,"(Rolland) I say, my voice barely above a whisper. I linger for a moment longer before finally tearing my eyes away from the photo. Climbing the tall spiral stairs, I search through dusty bookshelves and unopened boxes brought from my moving into the tower a few years ago on any books I can find in dungeons. After an hour of looking, I walk towards my desk, carrying a small stack of books that I drop onto the desk, kicking up a small storm of dust in the process. Breathing heavy from the effort of carrying them, I start to organize them from most relevance to least relevance. ¡°Let''s see¡­ ¡®Dungeon Delving 101: Survival Tips for the Unlucky Adventurer¡¯, sounds important considering I have zero experience dungeon diving. ¡®Dark Paths: A Traveler''s Guide to Famous Dungeons¡¯? Less important, but I¡¯ll still read it later. And finally, ¡®Soulbound: Dungeons and the Creatures Within¡¯. I¡¯ll need to get more books later, do they even sell these kinds of books in town?¡±(Rolland) Opening a window, I light a candle and start to slowly go through the books. A few hours of reading and intensive note taking later, I snuff the candle and go to bed. Waking up the next morning from the blinding rays of sunlight, I staggered my way down the stairs to grab a quick bite of something to eat. Two hours later, I exit the tower and start heading towards one of the few bookstores in town. Last time I checked, there were only two bookstores in town, and I might as well start small and save the best for last. After a bit of walking and definitely not accidentally skipping past it at least twice, I enter the shop and browse the book shelves. Not finding anything that interesting, I leave shortly after and head towards the only other bookstore.Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon. After looking around the bigger bookstore, I found two books that fit what I''m looking for and bought them for only a few copper, a steal! Taking the time to drop them off at home, I then start heading to the enchanters shop on the other side of town. I walk into the shop and then exit a few silver poorer, like, seriously, how was I supposed to know that enchanting a few pairs of glasses would cost so much! It was practically a robbery! Walking down the road, sulking, I happen to run into May and decide to run up and strike up a friendly chat. ¡°Hey May, Where are you off to today? Preparing for the dungeon?¡±(Rolland) ¡°Hey Rolland, yeah, I put in an order for a bunch of arrows yesterday from the smith and I''m on the way to pick them up now. What about you? Buying more paper again? I thought you got some a few days ago?¡±(May) ¡°Nope, I got some books earlier and just got a few pairs of glasses enchanted, I was on my way back and happened to see you, speaking of, any idea where Liam is? I want to talk to him about what he got after stalking at the store before I buy anything else.¡±(Rolland) ¡°He should be at the guild right about now, so go check there first¡±(May) We continued walking and talking for a few minutes until I split off to find Liam. Finding him was easy enough¡ªI spotted him sitting at a table in the corner of the guild, writing a letter to his mother in the next town over. Not wanting to interrupt, I decided to look around for Leah instead. Everyone in the party, except for me, has rented rooms at the guild. It¡¯s mostly because we can get better jobs since May, Leah, and Liam are all so close. When Liam and I first arrived in town a few years ago, I let him crash at the tower my parents left me, while May and Leah stayed with their own parents since they''re from this town. After we completed a few guild quests together, they moved into the rented guild rooms because they could all afford it by then. Not seeing Leah anywhere, I considered knocking on her door but decided against it in case she was still sleeping. It''s the middle of the day, so I don''t know why she would be, but you can never be too careful. The last thing I want is to get punched¡ªshe¡¯s a lot stronger than she looks. Instead, I wandered over to the quest board and looked at the long list of available quests. We all agreed not to take any quests and to focus on preparing for the dungeon instead, but it doesn¡¯t hurt to browse. There are more quests than most people would expect, but that¡¯s mainly because adventurers either head to the nearest dungeon or travel to the capital to make a name for themselves. Once the new dungeon is announced and the news spreads, people will start flocking into town and quests will be snatched up faster. I kept scanning the board until I noticed Liam had finished his letter. I walked over and sat down at the table with him. We talked about what items he bought at the general store, discussing what supplies we already had and what we still needed. Two hours passed as we worked through our list, and by the end, Liam said he¡¯d use our group fund to get the remaining supplies. Afterward, I returned to my tower and spent the rest of the day reading the books I¡¯d dropped off earlier. I eventually fell asleep, only to be interrupted later the next day by the groaning sound of the rusty gate. Looking out the nearest window, I saw Leah sprinting up to the front door. Closing my book on intermediate magic theory, I rushed downstairs to meet her. I had given everyone in the party a key to my front gate, so her arrival wasn¡¯t surprising, but her frantic energy was. ¡°Rolland! They¡¯re going to announce the dungeon to the guild tomorrow, but Dorin told us he sent scouts to check it out, and we¡¯re free to enter early! Liam and May are already getting ready!¡± she said, almost breathless. Hearing this, I dashed up the spiral stairs to grab my gear, and once suited up, Leah and I headed to the guild to meet Liam and May. It was finally time to delve into the newly discovered dungeon. Chapter 10: Dungeon Delve Rolland POV After about an hour¡¯s walk from town and into the southern woods, we arrive at the entrance to the dungeon. ¡°Wow, you weren¡¯t kidding when you said it was covered in glowing symbols. Any idea what it means?¡± (Liam) asks, staring at the door. I step closer to the massive door, examining the red glowing runes and letters covering the archway. ¡°No idea. I know it¡¯s some kind of writing, but when I cast [Identify], it just says my spell is too low-ranked to learn anything.¡±(Rolland) As I continue studying the runes, scribbling them into my small notebook, May approaches me. ¡°Is that even how [Identify] works? I thought it was only supposed to show the status window of whatever creature you cast it on,¡± (May) asks, her brow furrowed. Closing my notebook and tucking it back into my belt, I turn to her. ¡°Well, that¡¯s the normal use, yeah. But if you study enough magic theory, you can push the spell¡¯s limits and sometimes even create entirely new spells. Plus, there are a bunch of offshoots for [Identify]. I¡¯ve even heard that skilled linguists and other specialized classes can get unique versions of it.¡±(Rolland) After chatting a bit more, we gathered in front of the stone doors. I open my status window and review it one last time before we begin our delve into the dungeon.

Status Window
Name: Rolland Type: Humanoid (Human) Rank: Common Level: 10 HP: 200 / 200 MP: 525 / 525
Equipment: Arcane Staff: - A wooden staff infused with magical runes, used to channel spells. Spellcasting Bonus: +10% MP efficiency Wizard¡¯s Robes: - Lightweight robes enchanted to offer minimal protection while boosting magical power. Defense Bonus: +2 MP Regeneration: +1 MP per second (out of combat) Spellbook: - A notebook containing knowledge of spells, allowing the wizard to memorize and cast a variety of arcane magic.
Abilities/Spells: Arcane Bolt (Basic Attack): - Fires a concentrated bolt of raw arcane energy at a target. MP Cost: 20 Cooldown: None Identify: - Allows the wizard to instantly identify the properties of an item, creature, or magical effect, revealing its abilities, weaknesses, and rarity. MP Cost: 10 Cooldown: None Magic Missile: - Launches three homing projectiles that automatically seek out enemies. MP Cost: 30 Cooldown: 10 seconds Arcane Shield: - A barrier of magical force surrounds the wizard, absorbing damage for 5 seconds. MP Cost: 25 Cooldown: 20 seconds Fireball (Lesser): - Hurls a small ball of fire that explodes on impact, dealing fire damage in a small area. MP Cost: 20 Cooldown: 10 seconds Mana Regen (Passive): - The wizard regenerates MP while out of combat, allowing them to maintain a steady flow of spells. Arcane Mastery (Passive): - Increases the damage of all arcane-based spells by 10%.
Resistances: - Magic Resistance (Low) - Arcane Magic (Moderate) ¡°Come on, let¡¯s go!¡± (Leah) calls out. As we enter the dungeon, May takes the lead as the scout, followed by Leah, with Liam and me bringing up the rear. We¡¯ve packed enough supplies for a day or two, though we don¡¯t plan on staying that long. Liam carries our food and gear in a magic bag we all pitched in to buy a few months ago. The bag was worth it¡ªit holds all our supplies so we don¡¯t have to worry about lugging them around during combat. Everyone stays alert; Leah and I briefed the others on what to expect, so we advanced carefully, watching for any creatures, especially armed ones. Following May, we move through the forest, encountering some standard monsters like wolves and deer. While not overly challenging, they¡¯re still a good source of pelts and experience for leveling up. A few hours pass as we progress through the forest, while I draft a simple map of the area. No sign of the armed rabbits yet, but they¡¯ll likely appear as we go deeper. After a few more encounters with standard monsters, we decide to venture further into the dungeon floor, hoping to find a tougher challenge¡ªor perhaps even the boss. So far, it¡¯s been smooth sailing; no one¡¯s been seriously injured, so Liam hasn¡¯t needed to cast any healing spells. We continue, everyone on the lookout for any enemies nearby. Suddenly, May halts and pulls an arrow from her waist quiver, nocking it to her bow. Seeing this, everyone else gets ready; Liam and I begin preparing our spells, while Leah readies her greatsword. A group of five armed rabbits emerges from the brush, each wielding a spear. May looses her arrow, striking the first rabbit and kicking off the battle. I fire an [Arcane Bolt] at another, but it dodges, ducking under the bolt and charging forward with its spear. The other rabbits follow, with the injured one lagging but still pressing on.If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. Liam casts [Shield of Faith] on Leah, who steps up to take the front line and intercepts the spear-wielding rabbits. The spell, a simple holy incantation, boosts her defense. Luckily, it can be cast on others, unlike my [Arcane Shield]. As the rabbits close in, Liam and I launch basic attack spells to try thinning their numbers before Leah engages them in close combat. Seeing the charging rabbits, Liam and I begin casting simple attack spells to thin them out before Leah engages. We manage to take down two of the rabbits before Leah clashes with the remaining three. May pulls out a small dagger she had hidden somewhere and circles behind the group of rabbits as Liam and I continue casting spells in support. The rabbits are too focused on dodging magic and watching Leah to notice May slip behind them. She quickly strikes the injured rabbit from earlier, sinking her dagger into its neck. The rabbit dies instantly, dissolving into light particles. After that, May flanks the other two rabbits while Leah keeps them busy from the front. The battle wraps up quickly, leaving everyone unscathed. We collect the dropped items and continue across the dungeon floor, facing a few more groups of rabbits over the next two hours. ¡°Alright, I think we¡¯re about done for today. We¡¯ve picked up a bunch of dungeon drops, and I¡¯m pretty sure we all leveled up at least once. No wonder everyone dives into dungeons¡ªit really speeds up leveling,¡± I say, looking over at the group. (Rolland) Everyone agrees, so we start making our way toward the dungeon entrance, inspecting the items we collected along the way. But just as we¡¯re getting into it, May suddenly stops and starts glancing around. ¡°There¡¯s something hidden around here, but I can¡¯t tell exactly what it is.¡± (May) ¡°What do you mean, hidden? Is it a monster?¡± (Leah) asks, eyes narrowing. ¡°No¡­ at least, I don¡¯t think so. My skill says there¡¯s some kind of hidden entrance nearby.¡± (May) We spend about 30 minutes searching but come up empty-handed. Finding nothing, I mark the location on my map, and we start heading for the exit. Just as we¡¯re walking away, my foot suddenly slips, and I fall, tumbling down a jagged slope. I hit the bottom with a soft groan and sit up slowly, rubbing my head. Looking around, I realize I¡¯ve landed at the base of a hidden staircase, partially concealed by an illusion spell, leading into what looks like a dilapidated ruin. ¡°Rolland! Where are you?¡± I hear Leah shout from above. ¡°I¡¯m fine!¡± I call back, climbing back up the stairs and popping my head out of the hidden entrance. ¡°It¡¯s an illusion spell hiding some ruins. This is probably what May¡¯s skill was picking up!¡± (Rolland) Waving the rest of the group into the ruins, we come across an archway with a heavy stone door, much like the entrance to the dungeon. ¡°Okay, May, you lead the way. This ruin might be trapped.¡± (Rolland) With a short nod, May moves to the front of the party. She struggles to open the door alone, so Leah steps up to help pry it open. As they manage to get it just wide enough for us to enter, Liam casts a spell. I watch as a small ball of light appears above the party, casting a warm glow to light our way through the dark, damp ruins. As we move through the ruins, May finds a few spiked pitfall traps that we all easily avoid, thanks to her detection abilities. While May keeps looking for traps, I start inspecting the cracked and deteriorating walls of the ruins. Looking closer at the walls, I spot faint traces of ancient petroglyphs and sparse runes carved into the stone. I cast [Identify] on the runes and petroglyphs, but once again, I get no results. The system tells me that my spell is too low-level to glean any meaningful information. I ask Liam if he has any idea what the symbols mean, but he just shakes his head, much like he did at the dungeon entrance. I continue studying the markings as we quietly move deeper into the ruins. A few minutes pass when I hear a soft click ahead. I look up just in time to see May jump back as a hidden dart shoots from the wall toward her. She''s a moment too slow as the dart lodges in her left arm. She retreats a short distance, clutching her arm, and quickly pulls out the dart. After seeing no other traps activate, Liam rushes up to May and examines her injury. He gently takes her arm and assesses the wound before casting a healing spell. ¡°From the look of it, the dart wasn¡¯t poisoned, and your leather armor absorbed most of the damage, so it shouldn¡¯t be too hard to heal.¡± (Liam) He finishes casting the spell, and a warm, golden light envelops May''s arm, closing the wound. The only evidence left is a patch of bloodstained cloth and leather. ¡°Thanks, Liam. I should¡¯ve been more careful. I guess I let my guard down since no one¡¯s been seriously hurt yet.¡± (May) ¡°It¡¯s okay, May. We all make mistakes sometimes!¡± (Leah) With that, we continue moving through the ancient halls. May, now with renewed resolve, leads the party, guiding us past the remaining traps. All the traps are different¡ªpitfalls and darts, varying in how well-hidden they are. Some seem to have broken down from lack of maintenance. Finally, we reach what looks like the end of the ruin. The group enters a large room, mostly intact, with an elevated pedestal holding a small stone tablet on the far side. The walls are covered in a large mural, each wall depicting what looks like a single cohesive story, with more writing along the bottom. After May confirms that there are no traps in the room, we approach the raised pedestal. I move to the front of the group to get a better look at the ancient stone tablet. The stone rests on an ancient pedestal, its surface cracked and weathered by time. Faint blue runes¡ªonce vibrant¡ªnow glow weakly, casting an eerie light across the surrounding area. The stone itself is chipped, as though it has survived countless centuries. Yet, the glowing symbols pulse with an unsettling rhythm, as if the magic within it is still alive¡ªjust barely. I take out my notebook and cast [Identify] on the stone tablet. Cracked Rune Stone Type: Magic Artifact Grade: Rare - Glimmer of Insight (Active): Grants brief insight into ancient symbols or languages, allowing the user to decipher simple magical inscriptions on walls or items. Cooldown: 1 hour - Decay: This artifact¡¯s power will degrade over time, slightly reducing effectiveness with each use until repaired. - Weakened: The stone¡¯s cracked nature makes it vulnerable to intense magic, which could shatter it if exposed to high-level spells. Description: The Cracked Rune Stone is a small, weathered tablet with faded symbols carved into its surface. It emits a faint, pulsing glow, revealing that some magical essence remains, though the artifact has lost much of its original potency. This rune stone was likely part of a larger set of relics used in ancient rituals, but it has long since been separated from its companions and weakened with time. ¡°It¡¯s some kind of ancient tablet used to help translate symbols, languages, and magical inscriptions,¡± I explain. ¡°But it¡¯s damaged. I should be able to take it to a skilled enchanter for repairs.¡± (Rolland) ¡°Wouldn¡¯t that be expensive? It looks pretty damaged.¡± (Leah) ¡°Well, yeah¡­ but with the dungeon around, we¡¯ll eventually get enough money to fix it.¡± (Rolland) ¡°So, want to use that tablet to take a look at the walls?¡± (Liam) ¡°Sure, I might as well.¡± (Rolland) I pick up the magical tablet and activate its ability. Its dim runes flare up for a moment, and I feel a faint tingle at the back of my mind, like an itch. Moving toward what looks like the beginning of the mural, the tingle pulses slightly as the runes look¡­ familiar. It¡¯s as if I¡¯ve seen them before, in some book I¡¯ve read. I start studying the faded drawings and runes, trying to understand what they¡¯re showing me. The story seems to depict the history of a lost civilization. It begins with a group of people wandering across vast distances. They eventually settle and build a small town that grows into a prosperous city. However, the city becomes too large and can¡¯t support all of its citizens. People begin to starve, and the city starts to eye the vast forests surrounding it. They hunt the wildlife relentlessly, and eventually, the animals begin to fight back. Led by a strange creature¡ªsome sort of rabbit monster, I assume¡ªthe animals gather and siege the city. From what I can tell, the battle rages for years. When the humans are on the brink of destruction, their greatest mages gather and create six powerful tablets in a desperate attempt to seal the leader of the woodland creatures. But, from the looks of it, they failed. The final part of the mural depicts the city¡¯s fall, the last of the mages scattering and fleeing, each taking a different tablet. As I reach the end of the murals, the tingling in the back of my mind starts to fade. I hear a distinct crack from the tablet in my hands, and flakes of chipped stone fall, scattering to the ground as the tablet becomes even more broken. Seeing this, I pull some cloth from my bag and carefully wrap the rune stone. I tell everyone what I¡¯ve learned from the murals, and after a short discussion, we decide to leave the ruins. As we exit the dungeon, I turn to Liam. ¡°Hey, Liam, we never checked out the loot we got, right?¡± (Rolland) ¡°You¡¯re right. You guys want to check out the drops before we head back to town?¡± (Liam) With everyone nodding, Liam takes the magical pouch from his belt and places all the loot on the ground in front of us. We sift through the dungeon drops and divide the useful items among the group. May takes a slightly magical dagger that¡¯s in decent condition, Leah grabs a rough-looking iron band that should improve her defense slightly, and Liam and I don¡¯t find anything useful, so we begin returning the rest of the items to the pouch. ¡°Hey, what¡¯s this?¡± (Leah) I watch as Leah pulls a small rabbit¡¯s foot from the remaining loot. From the aura, I can tell it¡¯s magical, so I ask her to hand it to me and cast [Identify]. Lucky Rabbit¡¯s Foot Type: Magic Trinket Grade: Rare Abilities: - Fortunate Favor (Passive): Increases the holder¡¯s luck, granting a slight boost to finding items, avoiding traps, and succeeding in skill-based tasks. - Serendipity (Passive): Occasionally shields the holder from minor misfortunes, redirecting slight failures into neutral outcomes. (Cooldown: 1 day) Special Condition: - Marked by Fate: Whoever holds this trinket risks attracting the attention of the dungeon¡¯s first-floor boss, who may ambush them unexpectedly. Description: This small, white rabbit¡¯s foot is soft to the touch, exuding a faint aura of luck and charm. Once an accessory of old adventurers, it¡¯s said to bring luck to its bearer. However, some rumors suggest it¡¯s cursed to attract powerful foes looking to reclaim it. Chapter 11: The True Heros Arrive Wow, it looks like the first official delve into my dungeon went well for this party. Or is it the third delve? I¡¯m counting it as the first, since the initial visit was just that wizard and warrior discovering it, and the second was apparently an inspection. Anyway, it seems the wizard guy and warrior girl brought some friends. From what I gathered, their names are Rolland, Leah, May, and Liam. They talked quite a bit, so I was able to get a better understanding of the situation. Apparently, the guild will officially announce my existence to the town tomorrow. I doubt any adventurers would be reckless enough to explore a newly discovered dungeon without some preparation, so I¡¯m guessing nearby adventurers will start flocking here within three or four days. The first group did pretty well¡ªthey even stumbled upon one of the ruins containing a rare item. When I was designing the second floor, I had an idea. If I was created to help people train to fight calamities, maybe I should theme each floor around some kind of disaster or world-ending event. So, I added some drawings on broken stone walls and made up a story about a world overtaken by animals. Sure, Holly might not be a world-ending threat, but since she¡¯s just the boss of the first floor, I think it¡¯s fitting. That said, I did notice a few issues with the first floor. It seemed a bit too easy. When the wizard and warrior first came through, they had some trouble with a single rabbit, but that was mostly because they were caught off guard and had no information about the layout or creatures here. Now that the guild has investigated, I doubt anyone will enter without getting some intel from the guild or at least hearing rumors from other adventurers. But I still want to keep things fair for newcomers, so I¡¯ll probably create larger groups of rabbits to patrol near the center of the floor. Another problem was the ranger girl¡¯s detection skill. I don¡¯t mind them using it to locate enemies or avoid ambushes, but the issue is that she was able to sense when she was near the hidden ruins¡ªespecially the ones concealed by illusions. The ruins with the tablets are all hidden using illusion magic, while the others, which contain lesser magical items, are camouflaged by dense foliage. So, I¡¯ll probably need to make the tablet ruins harder to find. Do I just add more illusion magic? Or maybe throw in some shadow magic as well? Why not both? With that decision in mind, I start modifying the ruin entrances, all the while idly contemplating the various types of magic and the world around me. Some aspects of this world are undeniably fantastical, while others feel strangely mundane. I suppose all those fantasy novels I read and games I played weren''t entirely accurate. For instance, there are tons of different magic types, so many that they often overlap or even conflict with one another. From what I¡¯ve read in the system, this leads to constant debates among the world¡¯s scholars about the proper classification of magic. It¡¯s slowing down magical research from reaching its full potential. But enough about magic. I was also shocked to learn from the system menus that this world only has humans¡ªno elves, no dwarves, just humans. Sure, there are goblins, orcs, and other similar creatures, but it seems there are more monsters than intelligent species. So, I¡¯ve been thinking about introducing some fantasy races into my dungeon. Aside from zombies, the Myconids turned out fine, so I don''t see any major issue with creating more races to inhabit the dungeon¡¯s floors. Maybe I should even add some mini-dungeons on each floor to give adventurers more to do. For instance, on the second floor, I could create different sections with their own mini-bosses, each based on a different type of mushroom¡ªlike [Embercap] or [Dreamspore]. I can''t think of much else to work on for now, other than spending time with the Myconids or upgrading the sun and moon illusions. I could change them from hyper-realistic illusions into more realistic constructs made from fire magic, light magic, and advanced earth and gravity magic. Speaking of which, I should do that before I focus on the mini-bosses and their areas. Looking toward the illusory sun beaming down on my dungeon floors, I begin to think of ways to build a miniature sun inside my dungeon. The easiest method I can think of is to condense fire and light magic into a superheated plasma sphere, then stabilize it with strong binding magic. I could control the sun''s output using enchantment and energy magic.If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. Wow, there are a lot of different magic types in this world. I know I mentioned it earlier, but actually reading it from the system menus and putting it into practice really puts things into perspective. I can see why the scholars here argue so much. After a full day of careful calculations and testing with my dungeon core brain, I finally manage to create the artificial sun¡ªwithout vaporizing the entire second floor, thankfully. Now for the easy part: the moon. It¡¯s just a rock in space, right? I¡¯ll just make a rock, suspend it with gravity magic, and bam! Done! It feels a bit anticlimactic, but as long as it works, I¡¯m good with it. Now, mini-boss zones. I won¡¯t be adding any to the first floor since I plan on keeping it as a kind of tutorial floor for newbie adventurers. The second floor and beyond, however, are fair game. Maybe I could even add a secret boss on every floor after the first¡ªsomething for adventurers to challenge themselves with once they¡¯ve conquered the main and mini-bosses? But I¡¯m getting ahead of myself. Let¡¯s focus on the mini-bosses first. I¡¯ll likely need to expand the second floor significantly to fit everything in without cramming it too close together. As I begin expanding the second floor further, I contemplate how many mini-bosses I want. While reshaping the floor, I fill in sections of the forest as I go. Just as I¡¯m about to finish, I sense a group of two people entering the first floor of my dungeon. What? Already? I quickly shift my vision to observe the new delvers¡ªa young, very loud warrior confidently leading a scrawny mage through the forest, speaking so loudly they¡¯re scaring off all the common animals in the area. I don¡¯t even need to get close to hear what they¡¯re yelling about. ¡°Look, I told you, Jared! We must be the first people in this dungeon aside from the guild¡¯s scouting team! That means we¡¯ll get dibs on all the amazing loot!¡± (Alex) ¡°Um¡­ are you sure? Maybe we should¡¯ve prepared more, like everyone else? We only became adventurers a week ago! I don¡¯t think we¡¯re ready, Alex.¡± (Jared) ¡°Of course we¡¯re ready, Jared! I glanced at the guild¡¯s notes on this dungeon for like, a few minutes, and it¡¯s just common animals and rabbits with sticks! We¡¯ll be rich!¡± (Alex) Watching them bumble deeper into the dungeon, I¡¯m torn between shock and bemusement. Alex leads with reckless confidence, his cheap leather armor already worn and patched in places, and his short sword sporting several nicks from poor maintenance. His spiky black hair juts out messily, complementing his reckless energy, while a faint scar on his cheek hints at past trouble and stubborn resilience. Jared trails behind, clutching an oversized staff like a walking stick to steady himself. His white hair peeks from under a hood that keeps slipping back as he hurries to keep up. His travel-worn robes are dirt-stained and fraying at the edges, and he looks visibly nervous, his breathing uneven as he tries in vain to convince Alex to turn back. Sighing, I decide to check the dungeon¡¯s resurrection system¡ªsomething tells me this group isn¡¯t making it out unscathed. I configure the system to revive anyone who dies in the dungeon just outside its entrance. They¡¯ll have hazy memories of their death but avoid the heavy trauma. There will also be penalties: a loss of levels and temporary weakness. I set it this way to prevent adventurers from brute-forcing their way through the dungeon once they realize death isn¡¯t permanent here. With fuzzy memories, they¡¯ll recall that they failed but won¡¯t have perfect details to bring back to the guild. This way, they can still learn from their mistakes without spoiling all my secrets. Refocusing on the group, I find them deep in the forest. Somehow, they¡¯ve avoided all the monsters¡ªexcept Holly, who¡¯s watching them from the shadows, bemused by their antics. Maybe this is a super-complicated ruse to lower the monsters¡¯ guard? It has to be. People can¡¯t really be this clueless. ¡°I¡¯m telling you, Jared! Skills get stronger if you yell them out loud in battle! I read it in a book about the legendary hero, Gamir!¡± (Alex) ¡°Alex, that book was written by some crazy guy a few years ago. No sane person goes around telling everyone he¡¯s from another world.¡± (Jared) ¡­Yeah, they¡¯re just stupid. But I guess they need to learn somehow. It doesn¡¯t take long before they stumble into a patrol of armed rabbits hidden among the trees and bushes. The rabbits, wielding swords, spears, and bows, quickly surround them. Jared notices the ambush first and hastily points his staff at one of the rabbits, fumbling over the words to cast a spell. Alex, seeing Jared prepare to attack, charges blindly toward the nearest rabbit, yelling, ¡°Heavy swing!¡± at the top of his lungs. His strike misses entirely and lodges his sword into the ground, the blade clanging against a rock and chipping even further. What follows is nothing short of tragic. Alex is swiftly run through by a rabbit wielding a stone sword, his eyes wide with shock as he collapses to his knees, blood pooling beneath him. Jared fares no better, being struck by arrows and spears before he can finish casting his first spell. He falls moments later, his robes now stained crimson. A few minutes later, their bodies burst into light as the resurrection system activates. I feel their presence reappear just outside the dungeon, both of them gasping for air and looking around in confusion. Without much hesitation, they grab their battered equipment and retreat back toward town. Huh. Well¡­ what was I doing again? Chapter 12: Third Floor Construction Right, I was working on creating room for the mini-bosses on the second floor. The expansion was almost finished, so now it¡¯s time to design areas for them. I¡¯m thinking of adding four mini-bosses to this floor, plus a secret boss that¡¯s only accessible after defeating the main boss¡ª[Soulshroom Hive Mind]. I¡¯ll start by creating the [Embercap] area. Scanning the northeastern section of the dark forest, I find a spacious clearing that seems perfect. To begin, I scorch a large section of the forest, blackening the ground and removing vegetation. Then I plant a cluster of regular [Embercaps], their fiery hues flickering faintly in the dim forest light. Next, I focus on transforming one of the [Embercaps] into something stronger. Pouring magic into it, I watch as it evolves into a [Zombified Embercap Myconid]. A bit more magic, some fine-tuning, and¡ªthere it is¡ªa new entity: the [Elite Zombified Embercap]. Checking its status page, I¡¯m satisfied with its stats and abilities, so I tether it to the area to ensure it won¡¯t wander off. With the first mini-boss complete, I move on to the others. Each corner of the dark forest will house a unique mini-boss. After some trial and error, I create three additional mini-bosses: - [Elite Zombified Dreamspore], specializing in debuffs and status effects. - [Elite Zombified Wispwhistle], a master of speed and agility. - [Elite Zombified Ironcap], built to be a slow but nearly indestructible tank. Each mini-boss has a distinct focus, ensuring a variety of challenges for adventurers. The [Elite Zombified Embercap], for example, is all about damage. I design each mini-boss area with a cluster of the base mushrooms they were created from. Aside from that, it¡¯s just a slightly open part of the forest¡ªenough space for a proper fight while keeping the mushrooms out of direct sunlight. I can work on the secret boss later. So, what now? I guess I could finally start working on the third floor? Yeah, let me check through some of the new blueprints my spiders have been collecting for inspiration. Looking over the growing list of blueprints and thinking about the different places my [Portal Weaver Spiders] have teleported to, I come up with an idea for the next floor. How about a mountain range? I could make it lightning-themed, with massive thunderstorms occurring frequently. Then I could fill the floor with monsters attuned to lightning magic. With this thought in mind, I begin creating the third floor beneath the second. I start with a large room and expand it using space magic, making it even larger than the first and second floors combined. Using the mountains my [Portal Weaver Spiders] teleported to as references, I craft a sprawling mountain range that spans the entire third floor. This takes an entire day as I carefully sculpt it to be as realistic as possible, making the floor colder than the ones above and covering the mountain peaks with a thick layer of snow. Since no other adventurers have arrived yet, I figure I still have about one more day until they start showing up¡ªmaybe even two if that team of rookie adventurers spreads rumors about their deaths. After crafting the mountain range, the next steps are adding plants, monsters, and weather. I decide to start with the weather. The easiest way to create the thunderstorm effect is by coating the entire floor with weather magic. According to the system, weather magic exists but isn¡¯t commonly used due to its incredibly high mana cost. For example, it would take at least five intermediate mages to cast a weather spell capable of making it rain over a large plot of farmland, and even then, they could only sustain it for a few hours. But that¡¯s not an issue for me¡ªI¡¯m a dungeon core with essentially unlimited creative freedom. When I first arrived here and explored the system windows to figure out what that meant, I discovered that I¡¯d been classified as a sort of lesser administrator. In this world, a pantheon of major and minor gods oversees the natural laws and ensures no outside forces interfere with the world. The major gods function as moderators, while the minor gods assist in maintaining balance and ensuring everything runs smoothly. However, they¡¯re limited in how much they can directly affect the world, aside from providing holy magic. In contrast, I seem to be just one step below them. I actively shape and influence the world through my dungeon, but my ability to interfere with the system itself is limited. I do, however, have more access to information than most. In short, the typical inefficiency of weather magic doesn¡¯t apply to me. I enhance the weather spell by adding plenty of lightning and a touch of wind magic to create storms with a bit more bite. That said, I¡¯ll need to tweak the spell so the storms don¡¯t operate at full power all the time. A constant apocalyptic storm might be a bit overkill for the third floor. Next up are the plants and fauna. For the third floor, I can¡¯t just scatter regular plants like I did on the other floors. That¡¯s an easy way to have them shredded by strong winds or struck by lightning constantly. This means I¡¯ll need to modify them so they have a real chance of surviving. I start by strengthening and lengthening their roots to ensure they aren¡¯t uprooted by the powerful winds. I also enhance their ability to absorb minerals from the ground, making them more resilient. For smaller plants, I adjust their growth patterns so they stay closer to the ground and tweak their leaf pigments to improve photosynthesis under the overcast skies.If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. For larger plants, like bushes and trees, I go a step further. I make them semi-conductive and capable of growing organic batteries along their roots. These batteries allow the plants to store lightning, which they can use as a defensive mechanism. After ironing out a few issues with these designs, I plant them across the entire third floor. I even include smaller, hardier plants in a few caves leading deeper into the mountains. Now for the monsters. I decide to start with a few animals, enhancing them to be more attuned to lightning magic before working on the boss and mini-bosses. I begin with regular animals, similar to those on the first floor but slightly stronger. I leave out the weaponized rabbits to keep them unique to the first floor. Once the weaker animals are in place, I add a variety of lightning-attuned creatures. Some of these include [Thunder Wolves] and [Arc Hawks], along with other lightning-infused animals. The great thing about the monsters on this floor is that they won¡¯t go up in flames the moment they encounter a match stick. I don¡¯t want to ramp up the difficulty too much yet, which is why I¡¯m sticking to animals. However, I¡¯ve decided to introduce airborne monsters to challenge the adventurers and test their adaptability. As I finish populating the third floor with monsters, I sense a group of adventurers entering my dungeon. Huh, I guess time flies when you¡¯re creating and modifying life for your dungeon floors. Returning to the first floor, I notice a group of three people I don¡¯t recognize. Peering outside in the early morning light, I spot a line forming outside my dungeon. Apparently, while I was focused on working on the third floor, the guild set up a small outpost right outside. From what I can gather, they¡¯re trying to regulate how often groups can enter the dungeon. They¡¯re even charging a fee for entry, supposedly to allow the monsters to respawn as the group ahead works its way through the floors. The wait isn¡¯t too long, though. About ten minutes after one group enters, they let another group inside. They¡¯re starting super early, so I imagine everyone will get a chance to enter eventually. There are a lot of new faces too. I don¡¯t see the original group, the guild team, or the two rookies anywhere in the line. Maybe they¡¯ll show up later in the day? Well, no point in dwelling on it. I might as well get back to working on the third floor while the first floor fills up. It could be interesting to eavesdrop on the adventurers while they¡¯re exploring¡ªI might learn what they think of my dungeon. For the third floor, I still need to finalize the bosses and decide what kind of race will inhabit it. Mushroom people don¡¯t feel like the right fit for this lightning-themed mountain range. I¡¯ll focus on creating the boss and mini-bosses first and worry about the rest later. What animal should I use for the boss? Maybe I should just pick at random¡ªit¡¯ll save me time. Pulling up my massive, ever-growing list of monster blueprints, I flick through it rapidly until I randomly stop the scrolling. A turtle? Or maybe a tortoise? Are those even the same thing? I¡¯m pretty sure there¡¯s a difference, but honestly, it won¡¯t matter once I enhance it with a ton of lightning magic. A turtle isn¡¯t a bad choice for a boss, so I¡¯m fine with this. Since the mountain range has seven peaks, I¡¯ll place the boss on the last peak¡ªit can just chill there. All I need to do is flatten a spot and set up a food supply. I head to the top of the seventh mountain peak and start scanning the area for a suitable location. After a few minutes, I find a relatively flat spot that only needs a bit of tweaking to make it perfect for the boss with a bit of tweaking. An hour or two pass and I have the third floor boss set up! Let''s have a look at those stats!

Status Window
Name: [Stormshell Titan] Type: [Elemental Beast] (Turtle) Rank: [Epic] Level: 50 HP: 1200 / 1200 MP: 600 / 600

Abilities:

Thunderous Shell (Passive):

- The Stormshell Titan''s shell is imbued with the power of lightning, delivering an electric shock to any who strike it. Effect: Each physical attack against the Titan shocks the attacker for Lightning Damage and reduces their attack speed by 20% for 5 seconds.

Storm Surge:

- The Titan channels a massive surge of lightning energy, creating an expanding storm that damages and slows enemies within its range. Radius: 20 meters. Damage: Deals Lightning Damage per second for 5 seconds. Additional Effect: Slows movement speed by 50% for 10 seconds. Cooldown: 25 seconds.

Electrostatic Pulse:

- The Titan unleashes a pulse of electricity, targeting a single enemy with a concentrated blast. Range: 30 meters. Damage: Deals Lightning Damage, ignores 25% of the target¡¯s resistances. Cooldown: 15 seconds.

Tempest Barrier (Passive):

- A constant barrier of lightning surrounds the Titan, reducing incoming ranged and magic damage. Effect: Reduces all ranged and magic damage by 30%.

Ionized Ground:

- The Stormshell Titan electrifies the ground around it, creating hazardous terrain that damages and disorients enemies. Radius: 10 meters. Effect: Deals Lightning Damage per second and has a 20% chance per second to inflict the "Shock" status, stunning targets for 2 seconds. Duration: 10 seconds. Cooldown: 30 seconds.

Lightning Crash:

- The Titan calls down a massive lightning bolt to strike its current position, causing devastating damage and scattering enemies. Radius: 15 meters. Damage: Deals Lightning Damage to all enemies within range and knocks them back 10 meters. Cooldown: Once per battle.

Resistances: - Lightning-based Attacks (Immune) - Physical Attacks (Moderate)

Weaknesses: - Earth-based Attacks (High) - Ice-based Attacks (Moderate)

Description: The Stormshell Titan is an ancient, gargantuan turtle that has lived for centuries within the heart of perpetual lightning storms. Its immense shell is an intricate network of crackling lightning veins, and its slow, deliberate movements conceal devastating power. The Titan thrives in chaos, its strikes unpredictable and relentless. Only the bravest adventurers can hope to outlast the Titan''s electrifying fury, especially when it refuses to die quietly.